Statue in the Gardens of Waddesdon Manor 

This marble sculpture in the gardens of Waddesdon Manor was created by Jean-Baptiste Pigalle, a leading sculptor during the reign of Louis XV. Pigalle worked in the Rococo style, which embraced themes of love and intimacy. Here, we see a maternal scene. A woman gently embraces a winged child. The soft, rounded forms of the figures, carved from gleaming white marble, suggest an idealized vision of feminine beauty and maternal affection, and this sculpture may reflect contemporary philosophical views about childhood and education. Consider the ways in which the sculpture perpetuates the male gaze. The woman’s partial nudity and soft features conform to traditional representations of femininity, while the winged child might evoke classical ideals of innocence. The sculpture encourages us to consider the complex ways in which art can both reflect and shape societal ideals of gender, motherhood, and childhood.